Acetylene-gas generator.



Patented $6 .19, 190:.

E. R. ANGELL.- AGETYLENE GAS GENERATOR.

(Application filed Nov. 18, 1899.)

2 Sheets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

Wwmsscs D 'E; ANGELL. AGETYLENE GAS GENERATOR.

(Application fl1ed Nov. 18, 1899.) v (No Model.) v 2 Sheets-Shut 2.

' W0. 686,876. Patentbu Nov. I9, 19m.

murmur Wbwa56s. Ina/ 7 3 7 til. flooded before the next is brought into ac-.

UNrrnn STATES ATENT QFFICE.

EDMUND R. ANGELLpOF DERBY, NEWV HAMPSHIRE.

ACETYLENE-GAS GEN ERATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 686,876, dated November 19, 1901. Application filed November 18, 1899. r al N 737,541. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDMUND R ANGELL, of Derry, in the county of Roekingham and State of New Hampshire, have invented a new and Improved Acetylene-Gas Generator, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention comprises a novelform of Valve for controlling the flow of water upon the carbid in the carbid-chamber and -novel construction of the parts connected with a water-sealed generator, all of which novel features are hereinafter described and claimed.

The apparatus belongs to that class in which the carbid is placed within a number oflchambers, which are supplied with water in succession with final flooding, each receiving it intermittently as gas is needed untion, and the generators are so arranged that while one is in operation any of the others can be removed for recharging.

Reference is to be had to theaccolnpanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which-- Figure I is an elevation, partly in section, of the apparatus. Fig. II is a plan view of the generator, valves, and piping connected therewith. Fig. III is a sectional elevation of the three-way valve J in the plane a; y and at right angles to the pipe K K, and Fig. IV is a sectional elevation of the single-way valve 1; in the plane at y and at right angles to the pipe K K.

In connection with my device I use a gasometer of the ordinary construction, consisting of a tank A, which contains water to form a seal, and the gasometer A. The gas passes from the generators G G through the pipes I, H, and G into the gasometer A. It passes from the gasometer through the pipes C and T to the service-pipe and burners. The pipes C and C are connected beneath the water-tank A bymeans of the pipes N, N, and 'N". These pipes form a seal, and the pipe N, being extended, connects with the drip-cu p D, bywhich the excess of condensed moisture is removed from the apparatus.

The pipe 13 connects with a bulb B and then with the pipe 13, which is to be extended into the external air when the apparatus is installed to convey away to a point of safety the external air.

and part overflowing at the drip D until the gas passes into the pipe B, and, breaking through the water in the bulb B, escapes into the bulb B and of the drip D is much greater than that of the pipes N and N, but little water escapes at the drip, so thatenough re mains to restore the seal when the gas-pres sure decreases by causing the water to rise sufficiently in the pipes N and N.

The valve for controlling the flow of water upon the carbid is connected with the watertank W, which is attached to the large watertank A. A chamber Q is formed in the bottom of the tank W, and into the bottom of this chamber the pipe R is fastened. A cap X closes the lower end of R. Through the cap X the pipe w passes, having its upper end level with the bottom of the tank W andits lower portion connected with the pipes w and to". These pipes are provided with valves 1) o. The tube S telescopes loosely over the pipe w and within the pipe R. The annular space or chamber between the two pipes w and R contains mercury or any heavy liquid which is immiscible with water. The lower end of the tube S is immersed in the mercury, which forms a seal about it. The upper end of the tube S may be provided with a float f, if necessary.

The operation of the valve is as follows: When the gasometer A settles sufliciently, the disk m on the arm M comes in contact with the top of the tube S and presses it beneath the surface of the water. Water then flows down the tube S into the pipe 10, and thence through the valve o and pipe w into the generator G. When the gasometer rises, the buoyant force of the liquids in the tank W and pipe R causes the top of thetube S to rise above the water, and thus stops its flow. The chamber Q serves to receive the mercury Since the sectional area of f through the tube y,water flows fromthe pneumatic' tank until the lower end of 'y is'again submerged and the fiowceases. I

The generator consists of the pail or outer casingg, the cover E, provided with the deep fiangeg", and the inner pail or carbid-chamber g the pipe I, from which the whole generator is supported. Between the parts of I a threeway valve J is interposed, and the pipe K connects the third outlet of the three-way valve with the blow-elf pipe B. Th'e pail ghas handles b b, and its top edge is provided with two hooks h h, diametrically opposite each other, which engage the lugs ll, correspondin ly attached to the cover E. The hooks h ll point in opposite'directions. As arranged in the drawings, the one on the lefthand side of the cover extends downward from the plane of the paper and the righthand one upwardly from the plane of the paper. Consequently in order to hook the pail upon the lugs after lifting it to the proper height it is necessary to give it a rotary n10- .tion about its vertical axis by drawing the right hand toward the-body and carrying the left one from the body. To remove the pail from the lugs, the motion is reversed. The

pail g has'a lip o to receive water from the.

pipe w, and the carbid-ch'amber g has a hole near its topedge, at a, through which the water flows'down upon the carbid. Thus the water supplied to the carbid is caused to pass through the seal and so preserves its integrity; The three-way valve J and the singleway valve 1: are connected by the common axis J, so that the. same lever- L operates both at the same time When the valves are placed rightly for the operation of the generator, the lever L rests against the outer pail 9 near the back of the hook, and since thehorizontally-extending portion of the hook is so long that the pail .has to be revolved through a long are it is impossible to openthe generator without first-raising the lever -L,to the horizontal position, which sets the three-way valve J rightly to prevent the return of gas from the gasometer and at the same time shuts ofli the flow of water into the lip o. It also adjusts the three way valve so there is: communication with the generator and outer air through the blow-on! pipe B"; This communication is necessary in order to perniit the removal ofthe generator from its seal, as well as to allow connection with the seal, since otherwise-the atmospheric pressu re;

The cover E is rigidly attached to 'tion of the generator. the valve-plugare opposite the holes 1 and would interfere greatly with the operations. By this construction of the valves itis also impossible to let the water flow upon the carbid without first setting the three-way valve so thatthe gas willenter'the gasometer instead of passing into the open air through the blow-0E.

The relative position and operation of the I valves .1 and v are better understood by reference to Figs. II, III, and IV. In the plan view, Fig. II, E represents the cover of the generator, andthe circle about it the generator-pail, ll show the lugs attached to the cover, and h h the hooks on the generatorpailr L is the top of the lever, attached to the common axis J of the two valves J and c.

which receives the Water as it flows from the pipe 10. When the generator is detached from' its cover, the motion-of one of the hooks h in the direction of the arrow comes in contact with thelever L and reminds the oper- K is the pipe which'leads to the blow-oft pipe B",'and K connects the valve J. with it. 0 'is a portion of the lip of the generator-pail ator. that the lever must be raised to the hori- 3 H zontal position represented by the broken lines. Its contact with the lower side of the pipe K stops it in the right place. This mo- .tion closes the valve 1;, so that the water cannot flow through the pipe to, and also adjusts the valve J so that gas cannot flow back from the gas-holder, but so there is communication between-the generator and open air through the pipes K, K,'and B. Fig. III makes plain this adjustment of the valve J. As here shown, it-is positioned rightly for the operalhe ports 2 and 3 of of the valve-casing,'so there is free passage through the pipe I between generator and gas-holder, but there is no passage from the generator to the pipe K.' When, however, the valve-plug is rotated through a quadrapt in the direction of the arrow, the port 5 comes into that part of 'the pipe I which connects with the generator and the port 3 comes opposite the-hole Gin the valve-casing which .opens into the pipe K, and the solid portion of the plug closes that part of the pipe I which connects with the gas-holder.

communication with the outer air, but the gas-holder has communication with neither outer air nor generator. It is'also obvious that however many generators are connected with the pipe K, which really represents the external air, the operation of the three-way valve of each to accomplish the individual results described above is entirely independ- Y Thus it is obvious that whenthe lever L is raised into the horizontal position the generator has free out of the action of'any other and in; no way interferes with the operation, of any vother whetheranother is operated in a similar manner at the same time or not. Fig; IV represents the position of the single-way valve 0:

when the generator is in operation. When the lever L is placed horizontally, the hole in the plug is at right angles to the passage of the pipe, and so closes it.

The pail g of the generator G is provided .with a short pipe P, which extends over the lip on the pail g of the generator G. To provide for this, the generator G is placed on a lower level than G. If more than two generators are attached to the apparatus, all but the last one in the series will have a similar pipe and each succeeding one will be placed it through the pipe w. The outer pailg hasv a bead around it at d to indicate how much water it should contain before the carbidchamber is inserted in order to make the seal and yet not enough to cause the seal to overflow into the carbid-chamber when closing the generator.

The manner of recharging is obvious.

' Raise the lever L to the horizontal position,

grasp the handles 0 I), turn the pail g until i it can be lowered from its cover, remove the carbid-cha1nber g and dispose of its contents, see that the water in the pail g stands no higher than the head (I, return the carbid-chamber g" containing the carbid, attach the hooks to the-lugs, and press the lever L down against the pail g. If water is needed in the tank \V, simply pour it in. Fill the pneumatic tanks, if any are used in conjunction with the tank iv, and return them to position. If the gasorneter is at its lowest point, so that the telescoping tube S is in its lowest position also, water will immediately [low down the pipe 20 upon the carbid, and the gasometer will rise and also the tube S. If it is desirable not to start the apparatus at once, swing the disk HZ in a horizontal plane about its axis M until it lets the tube S rise. The apparatus can then be started by pressing the tube S down with the hand, remembering to swing the disk back into working position when it has risen above the tank Vt. Having thus fully described my invention, 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In acetylene-generators,the combination of agenerator containing carbid, a watertank above the generator'and a gasometer connected with the generator, with a valve for controlling the flow of water into the generator, comprising two concentric pipes rigidly attached to each other by the smaller pipe passing through a cap on the lower end of the larger, so as to form an annular chamber be tween the pipes adapted to contain mercury,

pipe having its lower end extended to the generator, and a tube floating concentrically between the pipes, having its lower end sufficiently immersed in the mercury at all times to form a seal and its upper end held above the surface of the water in the tank bythe buoyant force of the liquids acting upon the body of the tube, to close the valve, and adapted to be depressed below it by the descent of the gasometer to open the valve, substantially as described.

2. A water-feedvalve comprising twoconcentric pipes rigidly attached to each other by the smaller pipe passing through a cap on the end of the larger pipe so as to form an annular chamber between the pipes adapted to receive mercury, the larger pipe having its opposite end fitted to be fastened into the bottom of a water-containing vessel, and a tube floating concentrically between the pipes in the mercury contained in said annular chamber with its lower end sufficiently immersed at all times therein to form a seal, said tube adapted to be held with its upper end above the surface of the water in the water-containing vessel, by the buoyant force of the liq- 3. A water-supplying device'foracetylenegenerators consisting of a water-tank and a pneumatic tank connected therewith, containing water to increase the supply, and a valve controlling the flow of water, comprising two concentrically-located pipes rigidly attached to each other by the smaller pipe passing through a cap on the lower end of the larger, so as to form an annular chamber between the pipes adapted to contain mercury, the larger pipe having its upper end fastened into the bottom ofthe water-tank, the lower end ofthe smaller pipe to be extended to-the generator, and a tube floating concentrically between the pipes, having its lower end sufficientlyimmersed in the mercury at all times to form a seal and its upper end to be raised above the surface of. the waterin the tank by the buoyant force of the liquids acting upon the body of the tube, to close the valve, and

"means for depressing it below the surface of with a blow ofi' pipe is opened, substantially the larger pipe having its upper end fastened as described into the bottom of the water-tank, the smaller 5. In acetylene gas apparatus the combina- IOO I tion of a generator comprising-an outer pail and an inner pailadapted to receive water in the annular space between them, a fixed cover having a depending flange extending into the water in the annular space between the walls v of the pails to form a seal, lugs .on diametrically opposite sides of the fixed cover, hooks correspondinglyattached to the outer pail of the generator to engagethe lugs, having their ends extended horizontally and in oppositedirections whereby the outer pail of the generator is compelled to move in a rotary path before separated from the cover, a gas-conveying pipe leading from the generator-cover and a valve in said pipe having a handle depending in the path of a projection on said pail whereby when the pail is separated from 4 its cover, the valve is closed by engagement with the hook, substantially as described.

6. An acetylene-gas generator comprising an inner pail and an outer pail adapted to form an annular chamber between them to contain water, a .cover having a depending flange extending into the water in the annular space between the walls of the pails to form a seal, said cover being rigidly attached to a gas-conveying pipe from which the whole generator is supported, lugs on diametrically opposite sides of the fixed cover, hooks correspondingly attached to the outer pail of the generator to engage the lugs to fastenthe generator to its cover, said hooks having their ends extended'horizontally and in opposite directions whereby the outer pail is compelled to move in a rotary path before it can be separated from its cover, the inner pail having a hole in its wall near the top through which water flows from the seal into it, and

the outer pail provided with a lip to receive water from the water-supply pipe, and a pipe fastened into its wall near the top, through which water flows into the generator next in the series, substantially as described.

7.. In acetylene-gas apparatus the combination of a generator, a fixed cover for the same,

means by which the generator is compelled to move in a rotary path before separation from the cover, a water-conveying pipe discharging into the generator, having a valve therein which is operated by a handle hanging in the circular path of a projection on the generator whereby when the generator is rotated to separate it from the coverthe valve in the waterconveying pipe is closed, substantially as described.

8. In acetylene-gas apparatus, the combination of a generator comprising an outer pail and an inner pail adapted to receive water in the annular chamber between them, a fixed cover having a depending flange extending into the water in the annular space between 1 the walls of the pails to form a seal, lugs on valves and depending in the circular path of a projection on'said outer pail, whereby when the pail is separated from its cover the valve in the gas-conveying pipe is closed, connection with a blow-0E pipe opened, and the water-valve closed, substantially as described.

. EDMUND R. ANGELL."

Witnesses:

CARMI A. NORTON, EDWIN H. HALL. 

